Context: Recently, a team of researchers at the Centre for Nano and Soft Matter Sciences (CeNS), Bangalore have come up with a recipe for making face masks, termed as TriboE Mask.
About TriboE Mask

• It can hold electric charges to restrict the entry of infections without any external power.
• It is developed on the principle of electrostatics i.e. when two non-conducting layers are rubbed against each other; the layers develop positive and negative charges instantly and continue to hold the charges for some time.
• It is three-layered i.e. a layer of nylon cloth sandwiched between polypropylene layers, the latter sourced from commonly used non-woven grocery bags.
• The mask is made out of commonly available fabrics and it can be washed just like any other cloth and can be reused.
• It is not recommended to healthcare professionals and patients.

About Triboelectricity

• Also known as triboelectric charging, it is a type of contact electrification on which certain materials become electrically charged after they are separated from a different material with which they were in contact.
• Rubbing the two materials each with the other increases the contact between their surfaces, and hence the triboelectric effect.
• A very familiar example could be the rubbing of a plastic pen on a sleeve of almost any typical material like cotton, wool, polyester, or blended fabric used in modern clothing. Such an electrified pen would readily attract and pick up pieces of paper less than a square centimeter when the pen approaches. Also, such a pen will repel a similarly electrified pen.